The Magnificent Trio
by Secret-Telling
Summary: This is just my idea of what would happen if Hermione and the twins had struck up a friendship that would last them through their Hogwarts years. I love the twins and this is just what I think would happen if they had a closer relationship with Hermione and how that could change so many things. It's also a little insight into one of the possibilities of Hermione's home life. Enjoy!
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

**AN: This is a story about Hermione striking up a friendship with the twins when she starts at Hogwarts. This is just a proloque to shed some light on Hermione's experience getting on the Hogwarts Express and also a little bit about her family life. This story is mostly AU even though I will be incorporating some of the big events from the books. I just thought this was an interesting idea and I hope you enjoy!**

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**Prologue:**

Hermione was extremely nervous about starting at Hogwarts. She didn't want it to be like her old school. She just wanted to fit in and she hoped that Hogwarts was that place. Her father was pushing her trolley as she walked beside him. It was just the two of them, seeing as her mother couldn't make it this time. Thinking of her mother brought a feeling of deep dread that settled in her stomach. How could she be embarking on this new journey as her mother needed her? She looked to her father and as if he could read her mind he put an arm around her pulling her to his side.

"Everything's going to be okay, pumpkin." She tried her best to keep the tears at bay. She would not cry. This was supposed to be a happy day. She took a breath and kept repeating to herself what her father had told her. Everything was going to be okay. Everything was going to be okay. She didn't need to worry. She had a plan and she was going to stick to it. It always worked in the past, so it should work now.

She looked up at her dad since he had stopped walking. He met her gaze and gave her another squeeze. She was going to miss them. Her parents. They were all she really had. She didn't have any friends and they always showered her with love and affection when she had been made fun of at school. If people made fun of her here she wouldn't have them to turn to. It would only be through letters that she could communicate with them. That could be days until she heard from them.

She took a deep breath and looked in front of her between platforms nine and ten. It was still early. Barely ten o'clock, but she didn't want to be rushed or late. Her father wanted to make sure she got a good spot on the train. She thought back to what Professor McGonagall had told them. All they needed to do was run through the platform between nine and ten. It was a little nerve-wrecking and looking up at her father she could see that he was nervous too. Her eyes met her fathers and giving her one more squeeze she found her strength. She gave him a nod and then looked back at the wall that would be the entrance to the platform.

"Ready, dad?"

"Ready whenever you are, pumpkin." She could hear how proud he was in his voice. She gave him a small smile.

"Let's go then." She looped her arm through his as he had both hands on the trolley.

"Hogwarts, here we come!" Her father said as they took off towards the barrier.

Hermione had closed her eyes right when she was about to hit the wall bracing herself for the impact, but it never came. She opened her eyes to find a big scarlet train with steam billowing over the top. She turned her head to see a sign saying Platform 9 ¾ and then her gaze traveled to her father's awe-filled face. His mouth was hanging open in wonder. She gave him a big smile when he finally looked down at her.

"Wow! This is amazing!" Her dad exclaimed taking everything in. "I really thought for a second that I was going to be severely injured by running into a brick wall." He shrugged, "but we won't tell your mother about that. If she asks I was extremely brave and went in first." He gave her a wink and she shook her head as she laughed. She really did love her father and all of his quirks.

"Of course, dad. But you do know that she will see right through that, don't you?" Hermione asked him as they made their way towards the train to get settled. There weren't many people around.

"Not if we sell it right." He gave her a piercing gaze. "That means you have to work on your acting skills while you're at school. And I don't want to hear about you not having enough time because you have to study. This comes first, sweetheart." She just rolled her eyes.

"Right, dad. And if mom asks why my grades are failing I'll just tell her you told me I had to work on my acting skills instead of studying." He winced at her statement, but kept on walking into an empty compartment.

"Ok, maybe studying should come first before acting." He conceded. "But I do want you to try and have some fun while you're there. Not just studying all the time. There are so many things that you'll be able to do and I want you to take full advantage of all of them." He spoke seriously and she nodded along with everything that he said. He was now placing her trunk into the overhead storage rack. Once he was done he looked down at her wanting to hear her agree aloud to what he had said.

"I will, dad." They started walking back towards the barrier so that they could say goodbye. There was a bench off to the side out of the way, so her dad steered her in that direction.

"We still have some time. Why don't we sit while we wait?" He asked her as he sat down. She smiled and nodded her agreement. She knew her father wanted to spend as much time with her as possible before they would be separated. They sat there in silence for a moment. Each lost in their own thoughts.

"You will tell me if mom gets worse." Hermione broke the silence and gave her dad a sidelong glance. She felt more than saw her father's shoulders droop at her statement. He didn't say anything though. "You know Professor McGonagall said I could come visit sometimes because of the circumstances." She heard him let out a breath and put his arm around her to pull her close. She went willingly and snuggled into his side relishing the safety that she always felt in her father's arms.

"I will. She'll get better though. You'll see. Their is nothing to worry about." He told her firmly, but gently.

"I know and I'm going to be researching tons of things that I think will help." She looked up at him and caught his gaze. She saw his eyes sparkle at what she said and she could feel how much he loved her. How proud he was of her. Then she saw something else in his hazel eyes. She had not seen that look in her father's eyes that often these past years, but she saw it now. It was hope.

"You'll do great things, sweetheart." He pulled her in for another hug. They both jumped when they heard the train's whistle. Then they both simultaneously looked at their watches. They had fifteen minutes before 11 o'clock. They both stood up.

"You should probably be getting back to mom." Hermione looked up at her father and he saw the sadness in her eyes. He rested his hands on her shoulders and she felt the tears coming again. "I wish mom were here." She practically jumped into his arms.

"She wishes she were here too. You know she does." He held her tight. "And one day she will see you off to school. Just wait and see. Who knows? By next year she could be here sending you off with me and we can make her go through the barrier first." She gave him a watery chuckle.

"Or you could go first and show her how brave you are." Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears as she smiled up at him.

"That sounds even better." He puffed up his chest dramatically. She was going to miss him terribly.

"All right, pumpkin. You better go and claim your seat. I'll wait over here until the train leaves." Her father pulled her in for one last hug.

"Okay, dad. I love you." She said into his chest.

"I love you too. Make sure to write often. I bet your mom has already written a letter to you." She backed away and smiled.

"I'll be waiting for it then. Bye dad and take care of yourself and mom. Don't forget the schedule I made out and all the medicine is already organized. If you get anything mixed up you can always look in my notebook that has all the information you could need." All of a sudden she felt she needed to remind him of everything to make sure he was prepared. He just indulged her, smiling bemusedly at her. He could understand her anxiety.

"Got it. Everything is taken care of. You made sure of that. If I get confused I will consult the notebook. If I'm still confused I will owl you. Okay?" She saw his smile and knew she was talking nonsense. He wouldn't get confused. He knew as much as she did.

"Thanks dad." She smiled sheepishly. He bent down to kiss her forehead.

"I love you, pumpkin." He stood back up and gave her a little nudge in the direction of the train. There were a lot more people around now. She hoped her compartment was still available. "And remember to have fun!" Her father called and she turned around.

"I will! Love you, dad!" She stepped up onto the train and waved at him. He waved back and she took a deep breath preparing herself for her next adventure.


	2. Chapter 1: The First Meeting

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

**AN: This takes place about a month into Hermione's first year. This is Hermione and Fred's first real meeting and how the magnificent trio got their start. Hope you enjoy!  
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Fred was walking up to the owlery. It was still early. Plenty of time before breakfast. He was walking in a secret passageway that cut the trip time in half. It was about a month into the school year and George and he had promised their little sister, Ginny, that they would owl her regularly. So here he was on his way to the owlery to send her a letter when he stumbled upon something that he was never expecting. At the end of the hallway there was someone sitting down in the shadows. That was somewhat odd because he didn't think anyone besides him and George knew of this passageway. Walking up closer he could make out long, bushy brown hair that could only belong to one person. Hermione Granger. Walking still closer he heard something that stopped him in his tracks. She was crying.

Fred froze in place. Hermione Granger was crying. She was crying by herself. By herself in a secret passageway. What was he supposed to do? She let out another quiet sob and it touched something inside of him. It broke his heart just a little bit, but it was enough to make him move closer to her. She didn't hear him coming and as he got closer he could see her more clearly. She had her knees pulled up to her chest and her head was buried in her arms. Her bushy brown hair seemed to be deflated along with her mood and he found himself wanting to comfort her. She looked so small. He slowly knelt down next to her and he tentatively brought a hand up to put on her shoulder while he spoke softly, "Hey, what's wrong?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin and with her momentum pushed him back so that he fell on his bum. His shocked blue eyes met startled brown ones and they seemed to be stuck in place until she broke the silence.

"W-wh-at a-are y-you d-do-oing he-re?" she struggled to speak as she furiously wiped at her eyes. Fred didn't know what to say. She seemed so flustered and disoriented, which were two things that he never thought he would see on her face. Not that he knew her well, but from what he had seen she always stayed strong and composed.

"I-I was just going up to the owlery." He stated slowly. He felt like he was doing something wrong, which wasn't new for him, but he actually felt bad for once. Maybe he shouldn't have interrupted her. He quickly shook that idea out of his head. He couldn't not do anything. She had been crying

"W-what do y-you want?" she asked harshly. Her tone took him aback for a second. Before he could even think about responding she was talking again, "C-come to make f-fun of me too? S-see me c-crying h-here and going to tell everyone, huh? Or maybe you'll just set up another prank? Maybe you could take a picture and blow it up so everyone could see? That way everyone can join in on the game that is making fun of Hermione Granger. Don't worry about my feelings though. No one ever does anyway."

He was stunned speechless. Her voice had gotten stronger as her rant got longer. She was also standing over him now as he couldn't find himself able to move. Is that really what she thought of him?

"I wouldn't do that." He stated clearly and sought out her eyes as if to convey his seriousness. She snorted.

"Yeah, right. Just like you wouldn't give a first year muggleborn girl wrong directions to a class she was looking for, even though she already felt so lost coming into a completely new world? Just like you wouldn't put a bucket of cold water over the first year girl's dorm door just to hear them scream? Not caring if one of them was trying to get away before her dorm mates woke up because they had been talking about her behind her back, but she had heard anyway? I had to go back to change into new robes, so got to see the looks and hear the mean whisperings of my dorm mates. Thanks for that."

He was again rendered speechless during her tirade. He had done all those things. He had given her wrong directions thinking it would be funny. Then he and George had put the buckets of water for both the boys and girls first year dorms. They were first years and it was their job to prank them. He never thought that his pranks could be thought of as anything but meaningless fun. He just wanted to make people laugh.

"I-I didn't know." He shook his head trying to think of something. Anything that would make this right. The only thing he could think of was, "I'm sorry."

She hovered above him and as he looked into her eyes it was like she was peering into his soul. Judging to see if he was telling the truth. If he was worthy of her forgiveness and he couldn't help the feeling of coming up short.

"I'm sure you are." She shook her head breaking eye contact. The way she said it didn't sound like she was forgiving him, it was more like she said it in grim defeat. "Then tomorrow when you're back with your numerous friends you'll go back to your usual self. You couldn't possibly start treating me any different because then everyone else would see it. Nope it doesn't matter that you're sorry. Those are just words."

"No I mean them, I swear." He responded fiercely, but he could see it didn't matter. He wondered how many times she had heard the same words that he was saying now. How many times she had heard someone promise to be nicer to only go behind her back? Only to hurt her worse than they originally had. She sighed and that brought his attention back to her face.

"But don't worry. I wasn't crying up here because of you. Oh no. That would mean that you were special. That you were different from all the other people in this school that pick on me. You're not. You're just like everyone else. Your conscience can be clear because I wasn't crying up here because of you." She stopped a moment before she continued, "Do what you want. I don't care." She shrugged slightly as if saying that last part to herself. She sighed and started walking down the corridor he had come from. If he still wasn't paying attention so closely he might have missed what she quietly muttered to herself, "So much for this world being better."

At the moment neither of them noticed a little white piece of paper that lay forgotten on the floor where she had been sitting. It held the reason to why she had been crying in the first place.

* * *

Fred walked slowly to the great hall after his confrontation with Hermione. He had a lot of thoughts running through his mind. For the first time in his life he was second guessing himself and his way of life. He didn't really notice anything around him until he found himself sitting down next to his twin. George immediately noticed something was wrong with his twin by the slumped shoulders, the intense look of concentration on his face, and he just wasn't alive like he usually was.

"Hey Freddie, you okay there?" George asked him concerned.

"Georgie, do you ever think our pranks are mean?" Fred asked him looking up at him for the first time. George was taken aback and immediately confused. Where was this coming from?

"No, I don't." George answered slowly. He honestly never thought about it. The only time their pranks could be thought of as mean was if they were getting back at someone who had hurt someone they cared about. Then they would really go for something utterly embarrassing, but those were for only those that deserved it. Otherwise their pranks were harmless. Just jokes. By the look on his twins face he could tell that Fred didn't really believe him. That was a first.

"What's wrong, Fred? What brought this on?" George asked concern evident in his voice.

"It's nothing." Fred said quickly. Another first for George. His twin was keeping something from him. George got a dark look on his face.

"It's not nothing." Fred looked at him sharply at his tone. "It has to be something important if you're keeping it from me." Some hurt came out in his voice even though he hadn't meant it to.

Fred sighed, "Something happened." Fred deflated even more at his confession. "I don't want to talk about it here though. We'll talk about it later." Fred said as if just realizing that they were surrounded by other people and some could hear their conversation, like their other friend Lee Jordan who was listening closely.

"No problem, Freddie. But don't do that again. You scared me for a second." George whispered as he patted his shoulder in a comforting gesture. Fred nodded and went back to his breakfast abnormally quiet.

* * *

Fred's day went by like breakfast. He was more quiet and withdrawn and it worried his twin who had never seen him like this before in his life. Maybe once when he got sick when they were little, but still he was up and making trouble again in no time. They hadn't had time to talk yet since they had classes all day. Now they were walking on their way to the great hall for dinner. They were surrounded by friends on all sides and they were all laughing at some joke George had said. They all sat down while George continued his story. He was trying to take the spot light off of Fred's odd behavior. They were starting to eat when he said something that finally got Fred to laugh and everybody else for that matter.

Fred could feel eyes on him. He looked to the right and saw those chocolate orbs that had been haunting him all day. He saw everything in those eyes. It was like they were telling him that she had been right. Was he really any different? He hadn't done anything to change. Who knows, maybe in a few days he would forget about their whole confrontation completely. But then the longer he looked in those eyes the more he felt ashamed. She was right. Apologizing was just words. They mean nothing unless you show that you mean them. He watched as she went back to her plate. He saw that she was sitting by herself. He even saw how her dorm mates were whispering and pointing at her. He finally had enough. He had to do something. He was Fred Weasley. He stood up all of a sudden and it surprised George.

"What are you doing, Fred?" George asked with that worried tone again. George could see that look of determination in his twins eyes.

"I've gotta do something, Georgie." Fred said with pleading eyes. "Trust me."

"Of course." George nodded without a second thought. Fred gave him a lopsided grin and he finally saw that mischievous glint in his eye again. He heaved a sigh of relief. Fred was going to be just fine.

Fred winked at his twin as he started walking over towards her. He steeled himself. He was a Gryffindor. Plus he was Fred Weasley. He could do anything and get away with it. He strode over and anyone who saw him didn't think anything of it. He walked around and plunked himself down in the seat right next to Hermione. She jumped when she felt someone sitting next to her. She whirled around to see who had actually decided to join her.

"Hello there, Hermione. How was your day today?" Fred asked in a friendly manner as he took another plate and served himself again. The way Fred sat down and started talking to her made it sound like they were the best of friends. Like they did this every day. Fred finally looked at her when she didn't answer. She was sitting there with her mouth hanging open in shock. He also noticed that she wasn't the only one in shock. Most of the table was looking at him with disbelief and confusion written on their faces.

Fred leaned over and whispered, "you might want to close your mouth. And isn't it impolite to stare?" Hermione quickly regained her composure. "Not that I would know, right?" he gave her a wink trying to diffuse any of the tension. It didn't work.

"What are you doing?" she asked dumbfounded.

"Why proving you wrong of course." He gave her a small smile. He watched as she thought it through and then she gave him a puzzled look. She shrugged and decided to look back at her plate.

"You know, I'm not usually wrong." She said as she started moving the food across her plate, but not eating it.

"I see you're a modest one." He gave her a smirk and she got a light blush on her cheeks from his comment. He wasn't sure if it was from embarrassment or because she was getting mad. He decided to keep talking so she couldn't think on it, "But I always like a challenge."

She stared at him and again he found himself being measured by that stare. He held his breath and then as if seeing something she spoke softly, "You know everyone is looking at you wondering what you are doing sitting next to me."

He gave her a small smile in relief. He felt like he had finally passed one of her tests. He puffed up his chest and waved her off, "It's okay. I'm used to the stares. They're only looking because they just can't get enough of my classic good looks." She actually snorted at his comment.

"Yeah that's it and might I add you're a modest one too." He could see she was trying to suppress a smile and it warmed him a little bit to know that he had almost made her smile. He was getting somewhere. That was until someone interrupted them.

"Oy Fred! What are you doing sitting with her?" Fred turned a narrowed gaze to the person who spoke. It was his little brother. Ron.

"I didn't realize that was any of your business and you'd do best to mind it." Ron's cheeks flushed.

"He probably just needs help with some homework or something." Ron muttered but Fred heard him.

"Ron, why don't you try using your brain. I'm a third year and I know Hermione's brilliant but I don't think she's up to third year level yet." Ron's face flushed even more. He saw out of the corner of his eye that Hermione was looking down at her plate, but a corner of her mouth was lifted up. It made him smirk a little bit. That's when his twin jumped in.

"Yeah Ronnikins, and I bet she can talk about something other than quidditch." George said and there were a few chuckles. Everyone who had talked to Ron knew that's all he really talked about.

"Hey Ron doesn't just talk about quidditch." Harry Potter defended him. Everyone raised their eyebrows and now it was Harry's turn to flush, but it had the opposite effect on Ron. He sat up a little straighter

"You're right. He can also talk about chess." Fred supplied making everyone laugh and Ron to deflate again with an even redder face.

"And food." George ended and it just made more people laugh. Everybody thought that this was normal and it took away attention from the reason this all started. That Fred was sitting next to Hermione. Soon after the laughing died down everyone went back to eating. If anyone had a problem with Fred sitting next to Hermione no one said anything. They didn't want to be on the end of the twins wrath.

And that's how it started.


	3. Chapter 2: Halloween and Trolls

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. **

**AN: Hope you enjoy reading this one as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

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_And that's how it started._

Fred would sit next to her for every meal and naturally George joined him. Most of the time Hermione found them annoying and would rarely even speak to them. She was just waiting for the other shoe to drop. For this all to be a big prank and she was going to be more humiliated than she ever had before. But then it never came. Every day they would just sit, one on each side of her. If anyone found it odd they didn't say anything. Eventually the twins other friends started eating along with them too. For the first time Hermione found herself surrounded by people who didn't seem to mind her being there.

She usually didn't contribute much to the conversation as she was still skeptical, but she was never ignored. The twins always made sure she was in on every joke even though she rarely laughed and usually rolled her eyes. She would even scold them when they told her about some of the pranks they pulled. They would usually just give her a smile and throw an arm around her shoulder when she did that, which usually infuriated her even more. Some days she wondered if that was their goal. To just annoy her. Then other days she would catch snippets of their conversations that would revolve around developing their products. She knew it was wrong that they were making products to prank people, but some of the things they discussed were very interesting. She couldn't help but be curious. The magic they did was really quite impressive, but she would never tell them that. Whenever they caught her listening into their conversations of pranks they would give her a smirk and she would be annoyed again.

For once in her life though she found herself not completely alone. Her year mates didn't seem to agree with the twins though and in classes she sat alone and no one would talk to her unless they needed help with their homework. Then she would go to mealtimes and the twins always sat next to her to no avail. Sometimes she even wished she was in the same year as the twins, so she wouldn't be alone in classes. After a little while she changed her mind because since they were in third year she could ask them about things in her class. Well, she didn't ask the twins, but she would ask Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet, or Angelina Johnson who were all really nice to Hermione. Hermione often wondered why they hung out with the twins. They quickly became people that Hermione admired because they were all beautiful, confident, and extremely nice. To be honest if Hermione came out of her shell a little bit more they would probably become like big sisters to her. They never said anything mean or picked on her, but Hermione was a little intimidated because girls that looked like them were usually mean to girls like Hermione so Hermione would keep her distant. Only coming out when it was something to do with homework or classes.

After classes she usually didn't see the twins because they either had quidditch practice or were working on some prank. It didn't really matter though because Hermione would bury herself in her school work. She did notice when she would study in the common room that every so often the twins would come check on her. It took her a little while to realize that's what they were doing because she thought yet again that they were just there to annoy. But then they would ask if she needed a snack or if she needed help with her homework. It was a first for Hermione that someone other than her parents were treating her so well. She honestly wasn't used to it and didn't know what to think about it.

She still got teased, especially from the Slytherins. Her year mates weren't any better, but every so often she would see one show up with pink hair or would get stuck to a chair. She noticed that the twins pranks changed a little bit after her confrontation with Fred. It wasn't a big difference, but she did notice that their targets were only those that actually deserved it. They were usually aimed at Slytherins and bullies and she sometimes felt bad that she had basically called Fred Weasley a bully. In the moment though she was sure he was like everyone else.

She eventually got used to them and even came to expect them sitting next to her in the great hall. She knew that was dangerous territory, but they were being so consistent that she did it without even realizing it.

* * *

George and Fred walked into the great hall and immediately went to their seats right next to their favorite bookworm. They could tell that she still wasn't sure about them, but they were definitely wearing her down. They often wondered if something really bad had happened to her to make her so hesitant to call them friends, but they would shake it off and figure they'd learn it in time. Today was a special day, so they were both in good moods.

"Happy Halloween Hermione!" They greeted her in unison.

"Happy Halloween, boys." She responded giving them a tight smile.

"Now Hermione, what do you have planned for this day of all days?" George asked her excitedly. She looked between the two of them and the twins knew she knew that they were up to something. Not many could tell when they were about to pull a prank, but they found out that Hermione was very good at reading them.

"George, please tell me you aren't planning anything crazy." She looked at him. He raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"How do you know that I'm George? I could be Fred." He asked her squinting his eyes to study her. He saw Fred over the top of her head and he was also very surprised.

"You're joking, right?" She asked also in quiet shock.

"No. No one can tell us apart. Not even our mother." Fred answered her. She frowned and her brow furrowed. Lee Jordan was even looking surprised.

"Really? I thought it was rather easy." She shrugged and continued on with her breakfast. They watched as she picked up a piece of egg looked at it carefully and sniffed it before she deemed it was worthy and popped it in her mouth.

"What was that?" Lee asked her with a raised brow. They could tell he wasn't teasing her, but just curious.

"I was making sure these two didn't put anything in my food." She said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. The twins smirked. She was good.

"What would make you think we would put anything in your food, princess?" Fred asked with false sweetness. She huffed and everyone chuckled.

"You know I hate it when you call me princess." She nearly growled out.

"I don't know why." George said as he started eating.

"Yeah, it suits you." Fred finished as he winked at her and started eating too. She rolled her eyes and noticed that across the table Lee was looking suspiciously at his pancakes. She suppressed a chuckle. She continued eating cautiously since the twins were in such a good mood she knew they had planned something even if she didn't know what. After a little while she noticed that the twins weren't drinking pumpkin juice, which was rather odd because they always drank that for breakfast. She decided to steer clear from that beverage and just ate her food.

It was no more than ten minutes later when it started. Her eyes popped out at what she saw. Students were starting to turn into pumpkins. She looked at the twins and they were trying to suppress their laughter as they looked across the table at Lee who was now a definite shade of bright orange. She couldn't help it. She smiled because he just looked so ridiculous as he started getting round and his ear was turning into a leaf. She looked around and a lot of people were now pumpkins and a lot of people were laughing. Some of the girls were shrieking, but that only made others laugh harder.

Hermione looked up at the Head table to find that they were all staring open mouthed except for the Headmaster who was also laughing. He stood up slowly, "Well, Happy Halloween everyone!"

The twins howled with laughter even more and she looked over to see what they were laughing so hard at. Then she saw that Ron was rolling down the aisle because he had tried to stand up. She just chuckled and shook her head. Only the twins could have pulled this off.

* * *

It was finally time for the big Halloween feast in the great hall and the twins were extremely excited for all of the delicious food waiting for them. They made their way over to their usual spot and it wasn't until they were about to sit down that they noticed their bookworm wasn't there. They both looked at each other with confused expressions on their faces. Hermione always beat them to the great hall for every meal. They both shrugged and took their usual spots leaving an empty place in between them. Maybe she had to get something from her dorm or use the loo. They grabbed a plate and started to get some food.

It was about a half hour later and she still hadn't shown up. the twins were starting to get worried. Maybe they should start looking for her. Maybe something happened. It could have been one of the Slytherins. They could find out quick enough with the Marauders Map. Both the twins looked at each other and knew they were both thinking the same thing. Before they could make a move though they could here Neville Longbottom say something to Ron and Harry.

"Parvati said she's been in the bathroom…crying."

Fred and George both turned to look at Neville and then saw the guilty expressions of Ron and Harry. Their eyes narrowed as they stood up to go have a little talk with these first years. They stood behind Ron and Harry when they spoke, "Hello there Neville."

The twins were satisfied to see Ron and Harry stiffen in front of them, but they didn't turn around.

"H-hel-lo." Neville stuttered.

"We were just wondering who you were talking about." George asked. Neville paled and started stuttering again, but the twins couldn't make out a word.

"Who is crying in the bathroom, Neville?" Fred asked agitatedly.

"H-Her-mi-one." He finally got out. The twins faces turned to stone. No one had ever seen them look so serious.

"Why is that?" They asked in unison and it made a chill run down the first years spines as they sounded so cold.

"W-well y-you s-ee…" Neville stuttered again while looking at Ron.

"Yes it seems we do." George was standing directly behind Ron so he grabbed his shoulders and lifted him to turn him around to face him. Harry tried to get up to help Ron but Fred already had a hold of him.

"So, Ronnikins what did you say this time?" George asked.

"Sh-she was being a know-it-all." Ron bit out in as strong a voice as he could muster, which sounded more like a squeak.

"You know what Georgie?" Fred asked.

"What Freddie?" George asked.

"I don't think I care to hear his excuses. I can tell by his face that he's guilty." Fred answered.

"I quite agree with you." The twins threw Harry and Ron back into their seats and they were looking up at the twins wide-eyed.

"You should know by now that Hermione is with us."

"You hurt her-"

"You hurt us." They stared Ron and Harry down and they got some satisfaction in that they looked like they were going to piss in their pants. They then turned to stare at all of the first years.

"I can't believe you all got sorted into Gryffindor." George stated clearly so they all could hear. They all raised their eyebrows in surprise.

"We are the house of the noble and yet you all are nothing more than a bunch of bullies." Fred said.

They all looked down ashamed because what they said was the truth. Then surprising them all one decided to speak up.

"Hey we weren't the ones that made her cry. That was Ron. No one else did anything." The twins heads swiveled to the girl who had spoke. She did have guts. Too bad she was stupid.

"Exactly you did nothing. Are you the one that saw her in the bathroom?" George asked and she nodded. It seemed she lost her voice when the twins attention turned directly on her.

"Did you happen to offer her any comfort? Maybe a tissue at least?" Fred asked. The girl looked away from them and they got their answer.

"Just because you do nothing doesn't mean you aren't at fault. We are also the house of the brave and I don't see any one of you brave enough to stick up to a bully." George said.

"Anybody else think they aren't at fault?" Fred asked and as he looked at all the first years none of them said anything or met their eyes. Good they were learning.

"We don't like bullies in our house and unlike you we aren't afraid to stick up to them." George continued. If it were possible their faces grew more pale.

"I think it would be most prudent-"

"If you were more cautious-"

"There are many things that can happen to bullies-"

"in a big place like Hogwarts."

"Enjoy your dinner." They said in unison as they turned to walk away. They had a friend to find and comfort.

* * *

Fred and George were walking as fast as they could to the girl's lavatory. It was their goal to make sure Hermione had never felt this way again. They knew they couldn't protect her from everything, but they were going to bloody hell try. To think they failed so soon and because of their little brother. That little prat was going to pay for his mistake that was for sure. But that could wait. Right now they had a friend to find.

They finally made it to the bathroom and didn't even break their stride as they walked right in. They could hear the sniffling of Hermione and immediately went to the stall it was coming from. George opened it to see Hermione sitting on the toilet with red, puffy eyes. Tears were still streaming down her cheeks as she looked up to see who had come to spy on her in her most vulnerable moment.

"Y-you a-again?" she asked through her hic-cups as she tried to control her sobbing. "W-what d-do y-you just-t en-joy s-seeing m-me c-cry?"

"Of course not, love." Fred replied. George was amazed at the tenderness he heard in his twins voice. Hermione must have been surprised too because her gaze quickly shot to his twins as if taking in his sincerity. It seemed that that look caused Fred to finally take action and he came in and scooped her into his arms and turned around to sit on the toilet as he cradled her in his lap. George would say he was surprised, but not really. Fred had a certain fondness for this first year and since their twin bond was so strong George couldn't help but feel his heartstrings being pulled as her sobs renewed in earnest as she clung to Fred.

George knelt down in front of her and took both her hands in his and he waited as she brought her face up to look in his eyes. "Now, Hermione I thought we told you not to listen to anything anybody says about you. You know it's all rubbish." He spoke softly and he saw that her eyes were still sparkling with tears but there was some hope in her eyes now.

"Yeah, Hermione, especially something that ickle-Ronnikins says. He's about as immature as they come. And that's coming from someone who has known him since he was in diapers." Fred added.

"B-but everyone laughed a-along with him." she responded brokenly.

"Don't worry about them Hermione we've already come up with plans for those not-so-noble-Gryffindors." George gave her a mischievous grin. Hermione looked between the two of them and couldn't help her lips curling up slightly at the corners.

"Oh no, what have you two planned?" She asked crossing her arms over her chest. They could tell she was trying to be stern, but they could hear the curiosity in her voice.

"That's a surprise love." Fred told her with a wink. She let out a little giggle and it immediately had an effect on both of the boys. They really hadn't realized how much of their heart that this girl had stolen without even her knowledge.

"All right, but you two better not get into any trouble." she said shyly. Both of the twins eyebrows shot up in shock and they smirked at each other.

"Oh brother-of-mine, doth my ears deceive me or did Miss Hermione Granger here just give us permission to pull one of our pranks?" Fred asked his twin with a wide grin.

"Well, Gred if your ears are hearing things then mine are too because I do believe that is what she said." George teased right along with him. Hermione laughed lightly at their teasing and both boys found themselves liking the sound. They vowed to try and make her laugh as often as they could. She obviously hadn't done it enough in her short life. As they were both going to continue with their teasing they all heard someone enter the bathroom. At the sound of large footfalls and an extremely horrid stench they all turned around to find themselves staring at a huge mountain troll. All of their mouths dropped as their eyes grew wide in horror.

"Oh Merlin." They all said together.

"Guys, tell me there is not a mountain troll standing ten feet in front of us?" Hermione squeaked out.

"Can't do that, love-"

"Cause there is in fact a mountain troll-"

"right in front of us." They finished each others sentences.

"I was hoping I was wrong." She whispered as the troll finally seemed to see them in their stall. They all seemed frozen for a second before they saw the troll raise its arm that was holding a club.

"Oh sweet Merlin!"

"Duck!"

They all flew down on the floor Fred covering Hermione with his body as he had still been holding her in his lap. They all felt the debris from the stalls fall on their backs but they weren't too badly hurt.

"Fred I think this calls for a distraction-"

"So that we can hopefully sneak out of here alive. Got it George." Hermione watched as they started looking through their pockets coming up with all sorts of things. She decided it was probably best that someone keep an eye on the troll so she looked up to see it was bringing its club down on them again.

"Move!" she yelled as she pushed Fred and George out of the way just in time to feel the club whoosh right where their heads had been.

"Thanks Princess!" they both told her in unison. Hermione was too stressed right now to even care about the nickname.

"Got it!" George yelled.

"Ready Fred?"

"Ready George."

"'Mione?"

"Ready? Ready for what?" she shrieked. They noticed that through the chaos they had been separated a little bit from each other. Hermione was throwing pieces of debris at the troll to distract it long enough for the twins to get their stuff together. Here goes, they thought.

"Fire in the hole!" George yelled as he threw something at the trolls feet. It immediately started letting off smoke throughout the whole bathroom so that you couldn't see a thing. Fred and George had both leapt up right after George had yelled and ran to Hermione's side. They each took one arm each and surrounded her. Well none of them could see, but at least the troll couldn't either, Hermione thought.

"Now how are we supposed to get out of here the doors are on the other side of the big troll." Hermione yelled through the haze.

"Hadn't thought of that."

"Yeah that's a good point." They heard a crash from the other side of the room

"Well, that's just great. It sounds like it's just swinging away at anything now. Don't you know some sort of spell or countercurse to get rid of the smoke?" she yelled at them both. The twins simultaneously took out their wands and smiled sheepishly at her not that she could see them. They were all crouched low hoping that they wouldn't come across the troll and it's swinging club. A moment later she heard both of the twins say a spell and the smoke started to dissipate. Just in time for them all to locate the door and see that someone had closed it and they all heard a distinct lock.

"What the bloody hell was that?" George yelled.

"Did some git just lock us in here?" Fred yelled back.

"With a mountain troll?" Hermione yelled too. Luckily the troll was looking for them on the other side of the room and since the smoke was still close to the ground they hadn't been discovered yet.

"Okay. Okay. Mountain trolls aren't the smartest of creatures. I say we lure it over here and when it comes close enough we all scramble and it won't know which way to go." Hermione spoke in a rush. The twins were nodding along with her logic.

"Got it." They both said in unison. All three of them started throwing debris at the troll and yelling at it trying to get its attention. Hermione then had another idea as her brain was working a mile a minute.

"Do you guys have any rope on you?" she questioned them as the troll started to make its way dumbly over to them. Since the twins had been searching their pockets earlier they knew that they did indeed have some rope. And not just any rope but magical rope.

"Yeah we do." Fred stated pulling it out of his pocket.

"Why?" George asked as they all started stepping back as the troll got closer. Hermione quickly grabbed one end and handed it to Fred and took the other end and handed it to George.

"Both of you run in opposite directions. Now!" she yelled as the troll was suddenly attacking. She didn't know where this was coming from, but she certainly just went with her adrenaline rush. Both of the boys did not hesitate when she spoke and quickly ran as she had said and not a moment too soon as the club had landed right where George had been standing. She herself only had one option and that was running straight at the troll. She sucked up her Gryffindor courage and ran as fast she could and thanked Merlin that her dad had put her in soccer when she was younger as she first yelled "Aquamenti!" and slid straight through the trolls legs on the now slippery floor.

The hose of water that poured out from her wand had made a huge puddle where the troll now stood. This wouldn't have been so bad, but the troll had watched her and tried to turn when she went through its legs. The tiles were now slippery and the twins understood what she was trying to accomplish and ran forward with them both holding the rope tightly. They took the troll by surprise as the rope caught its legs sending it flying into the wall where they had just been. If that wasn't enough to knock it out his club also slipped from its hand and landed with a sick crunch on the trolls chest.

All three of them stood there in shock as the enormity of what had just happened struck them all at once. They all stood next to each other and shared looks of astonishment when they saw that the troll was indeed knocked out.

"That was bloody brilliant!" the twins said at the same time looking at Hermione.

"You two were amazing!" she exclaimed back. "Where did you get that rope from?" Before they could answer the door creaked open and it startled them all as they looked to see who it was. It happened so fast that no one really knew what happened until after the fact, but it seemed when the door was forcefully pushed open some of the stone blocks on that wall that had been loosened earlier by the troll happened to finally get loose. It was also right above where the three were currently standing. Hermione saw it out of the corner of her eye and immediately pushed the twins forward as she tried to jump with them. She let out a strangled cry as one of the stones landed on her leg.

"'Mione!" The twins yelled.

"What happened?" Professor McGonagall asked taking in the whole scene with wide eyes. Professor Snape and Quirrell right behind her. Along with Ron and Harry it seemed. The twins though hadn't taken their eyes off of Hermione who was trying to keep her cries of pain as silent as possible, but her right leg was completely crushed. The twins immediately aimed their wands and by both of their spells being shot at once the stone was turned into fine dust.

Each of them took an arm as they pulled her up as gently as they could. She whimpered against them and buried her face into George's chest as she held onto Fred's arm for dear life. If they weren't so worried about her they would have noticed that she was cutting off the circulation to both of their hands. They both quickly took an arm each and hooked it around their necks and then they gave each other a look as they both bent down slightly to lift her legs up. George was on her right side, so he grabbed the back of her thigh as gently as he could but she still let out another whimper of pain. From the looks on the twins faces you would have thought they were the ones that had gotten hurt.

"We have to get her to the hospital wing!" They both shouted as everyone was just staring at them dumbfounded.

"Move!" They yelled. That finally brought everyone out of their stupor and they jumped to move out of the way, which was a good idea because they would have been pushed if they didn't move quickly enough. Everyone stared after them until Professor McGonagall finally found her composure.

"I'll leave it to you Professor Quirell to make sure this beast gets out of the castle. I'll send some of the other teachers to help you levitate it." McGonagall spoke and got a shaky nod from Quirell. She immediately started heading off in the direction the twins had taken to the hospital wing. Professor Snape was on their tail and Ron and Harry trailed behind him. They all followed because this was definitely something they all wanted to know the story behind.


End file.
